Why does God allow evil?
If God is good, why is there so much evil in the world?
Why do we have war and murder, violence after violence, famine after famine?
Why do innocent children die at the hands of cruel men?
Why do things like pornography, alcohol, and drugs tear families apart?
Why this? Why that? Why do we suffer needlessly? Why?
How many of you have ever asked that question?
I have been asked this question numerous times. And while I don't pretend to know everything there is to know about this, I will at least attempt to give us some direction in our thinking about this issue.
My hope is that we will have a clearer perspective not only about the problem of evil and suffering, but more importantly, a clearer perspective of the sovereignty or power of God.
So, Why does God allow evil?
There is a line of reasoning that goes something like this:
- A good God would destroy evil.
- An all-powerful God could destroy evil.
- Evil is not destroyed.
- Therefore, there cannot possibly be such a good and powerful God.
On the surface, to someone not grounded in Scripture who has experienced some form of tragedy, this would seem logical. After all, if God were good and all-powerful, wouldn't it stand to reason that He would destroy the evil that plagues our world?
Then why doesn't He? Could it be that He is really not a good God? Look at Psalm 34:8
Taste and see that the Lord is good; blessed is the man who takes refuge in Him.
Could it be that He is not all-powerful? I don't think so. Look at Isaiah 40: 25-26
"To whom will you compare Me? Or who is My equal?" says the Holy One. Lift your eyes and look to the heavens: who created all of these? He brings out the starry host one by one, and calls them each by name. Because of His great power and mighty strength, not one of them is missing.
I would definitely have to say that the Creator of the Universe is plenty powerful!
But, there are some things He cannot do!
1st, God cannot lie – Numbers 23:19
2nd, James tells us that God cannot be tempted, nor can He tempt people to sin.
In other words, God cannot do anything out of His character. The reason God cannot lie is because He is truth. He cannot tempt to sin because He is pure and holy.
He also can't undo the past, create a square triangle, or make what is false true.
So what do we make of this? God is good and He is all-powerful to perform any and all things within His character, and yet we have evil.
I want you to listen closely. This is a little theological so hang with me…
God could not eliminate evil without eliminating the possibility of accomplishing other goals that are important to Him. God created humans in His own image, capable of having and sustaining a personal relationship with Him. But to really be in His image, they have to be capable of freely loving Him and following His will without being forced.
And, creatures who are free to love God must also be free to hate or ignore Him. And when people act in ways outside the will of God, great evil and suffering is the ultimate result. God is capable of destroying evil – but not without destroying human freedom.
A professor by the name of Norman Geisler says this about it. "The free choice of humans is the source of evil." He used the analogy of rust. "Rust does not exist on its own; it's a part of the metal. The same is true with evil. It does not exist on its own; it is part of our make-up as a result of the fall."
The reason God doesn't destroy evil is because He would have to destroy us as well.
I know this only scratches the surface but there is only so much you can put in a blog. This is the basics as to why a loving and all-powerful God would allow evil. If you have any questions or comments, please feel free to leave them…